Research Guides: Access Resources Off Campus: Creating Durable Links

Create Durable Links

The University Libraries offers numerous electronic resources. If you are seeking to add content accessible to the CU community through course management systems or web platforms, follow these instructions to create durable links.

Photo by Sean Dubois CC 0

Why durable links?

Durable links are hyperlinks to electronic resources (e.g. journal articles, books and book chapters, databases, etc.) which are available as part of the University Libraries' online collections. Durable links allow faculty to connect students to required and recommended readings and do not require faculty to obtain copyright permission.

What do you want to link to?

Database

If you wish to provide links to library databases, the best link to share with students can be found on the Libraries A-Z Databases page.

Article, Book Chapter or Streaming Video

If you wish to provide links to articles, book chapters or streaming videos from subscribed library resources, go to the Link Creator tool below.

Other types of resources

If you wish to provide links to other types of library resources for your courses, please contact the Libraries Teaching and Learning Unit or your subject specialist for assistance in assigning an appropriate link that students can use from on or off campus.

Link Creator Tool

A durable link is composed in two steps:

1. Obtain a direct link to the desired article or book.

This link should be formatted so that it works consistently and is not dependent on a specific computer or browser session.

2. Append the proxy prefix to the beginning of the direct link; this step provides secure off-campus access to resources.

The proxy prefix is: https://colorado.idm.oclc.org/login?url=
The form below will help you append and test the durable, proxied link.

Tips

If you use CU Full Text links from OneSearch or from a publisher's website to access your article, click on Open content in a new tab at bottom of right-side frame.
There should be no spaces between the proxy prefix and the direct URL.
Always test the complete link (e.g. the proxy prefix+direct URL).
Freely accessible materials do not need the proxy prefix and may not work with the proxy prefix.
Some resources do not allow you to copy the browser URL to share with others because a limited time session URL is displayed (Ebscohost, for example). When you leave that session, or share with someone, that URL will no longer work. For resources like this, look for a link/button labeled as "permalink", "cite" or something similar.
If you are off campus using EZProxy when you initially access the article, you may have to edit your durable citation before adding the proxy prefix. For example, here is the durable URL for a Journal of Geography article:
1. URL as displayed: https://search.proquest.com.colorado.idm.oclc.org/pao/docview/1290538558/52284163379B4685PQ/6?accountid=14503
2. URL edited to remove embedded proxy information: https://search.proquest.com/pao/docview/1290538558/52284163379B4685PQ/6?accountid=14503
3. Final URL with proxy prefix added to the beginning of the link: https://colorado.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/pao/docview/1290538558/52284163379B4685PQ/6?accountid=14503

Example

To create a link to this article: Aversa, E., Bajjaly, S., Barlow, D., Hahn, T. B., Lester, J., Riggs, B., & Roderer, N. (2009). Web‐based teaching: Surviving and thriving in a pluralistic online world. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 46(1), 1-3. doi:10.1002/meet.2009.1450460156

1. Direct link to article:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/meet.2009.1450460156/abstract

2. Proxy prefix + direct link:

https://colorado.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/meet.2009.1450460156/abstract

Many thanks to George Washington University's Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library for assistance in creating this guide.

Access Resources Off Campus